Westover
Seymour, Baylor County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Westover Platted in 1910 on the gulf, Texas and Western Railroad, Westover developed into a small market center providing goods and services for area farmers and ranchers. J. W. Stevens offered part of his ranchland for the townsite, which was given the maiden name of his mother-in-law. James H.B. Kyle served as first postmaster when the post office was established in 1910. Businesses, including a bank, barbershops, cotton gins and dry goods stores, as well as churches, a school and a cemetery were established to serve area residents. After the commercial area suffered a fire in 1921 and the rail line was abandoned in 1942, many settlers and businesses moved to Seymour. (2002)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Platted in 1910 along the Gulf, Texas and Western Railroad, Westover sprang up as a market center for area farmers and ranchers, taking the maiden name of rancher J. W. Stevens's mother-in-law. A post office, bank, gins, shops, churches, and a school quickly followed. But a 1921 fire and the 1942 abandonment of the rail line drained the town, and many settlers and businesses moved to Seymour.
Why it matters
Westover's brief rise and fall is a classic tale of the railroad-born prairie town, thriving and then fading with the tracks that made it.
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Related people
- · J. W. Stevens
- · James H. B. Kyle
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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